Coin slide



Nia;I 9, 1933. l I w A TRATSCH 1,908,380

G01N SLIDE Filed NOV. 5, 1951 5 4 mum gmwnlCO/c Wlier A. T ra ischposition andy the Patented May 9, 1 933 UNITED STATES APATENT iol-'FicaWALTER A. TBATSCH, 0F CHICAGO, ASSIGNOB OF ONE-HALF TO THE HONABCH TOOL& HANUFACTUBING COMPANY OF CINCINNATI, OHIO, A. Comm- TION OF OHIO COINSLIDE Application med November 5, 1931. Serial Ko. 573,173.

This invention relates to coin slides for vending machines andv has forits ob]ect to provide a construction which is s imple in parts and moreeilicient in operation than those heretofore proposed.

With these and other objects in view the invention resides in the noveldetails of construction and combinations of arts as will be disclosedmore fully hereina er and particularly pointed out in the claims.

Referring to the accompanying drawing forming a part of thisspecification 'in which like numerals designate like parts in all theviews,- p

Fig. 1 is a central longitudinal sectional view of the slide assemblywith the slide in outermost position ready to receive a coin;

Fig. 2 is a view similar to Fig. 1 differing therefrom in that the slidenow shows an'inserted coin and has been pushed inwardly a part of itsultimate travel;

Fig. 3 is a view similar to Figs. 1 and 2 showing the slide at a stillfurther inward contained coin dropping therefrom;

Fig. 4 is a transverse sectional view of the parts shown in Fig. 2,taken-as on the line 4 4 thereof and looking in the direction of thearrows;

Fig. 5 is an enlarged central longitudinal view of a portion of the coinslide illustrating the locking of the slide when a magnetic disk isfraudulently disposed therein; and

Fig. 6 is a partial bottom elevational view illustrating the relativepositions of the locking dogs with respect to said slide.

This invention relates to a mechanism wherein the insertion of a coin isnecessary in order to unlock or release the vending mechanism.Specifically it contemplates a coin slide mounted substantially in ahorizontal plane and provided with a circular opening within which therequisite coin is inserted, said coin being retained in the plane ofsaid slide by virtue of an underlying surface carried by the slide guidemember. If the coin be of proper'predetermined characteristics such asvalue, thickness, and diameter, as well asl composition of metal, thenthe slide may be moved inwardly of the machine the .full andpredetermined distance necessary to cause the slide to unlockor releasethe vending mechanism. If the disk inserted in the coin slide is not ofthe proper predetermined characteristics, then the slide can not move tothe limit of its intended travel whereupon the vending mechanism willnot be released or unlocked.

most position relative to the vending cabinet,

and therefore the drawing does not show any elements of the vendingmechanism nor does it show any cooperatin interconnection between theslide and the lock or release for the vending mechanism, since thisforms no part of the present invention. Also the cabinet to which thecoin slide mechanism is attached is not shown in the drawingffor thesake o clearneSS.

Referring to the drawing," 1 indicates a cover plate to be applied overand in registry with a suitable opening in the wall of the v vendingmachine cabinet indicated by the dot and dash lines 2, said plate beingsecured to said wall as by the screws 3. Said plate has an openingtherethrough of a size and shape to snugly fit the slide guide generallyindicatedA by the numeral i and which in turn receives the slidegenerally indicated by the numeral 5. The guide is secured as by thescrews 6 to an angle plate 7 fastenedto the cover plate 1 as by therivets 8. The member has 'a portion extending a short distance outwardlybeyond the cover plate, which portion is provided centrally thereof witha finger holev 9 of a' diameter suliicient to permit passingtherethrough a coin of less diameter than 'that' required to operatethis particular sli e.

guide The guidel lhas centrally di osed thereof a i ear the innermostend o the A guide member there is provided a circular coin I releaseopening 13 of a diameter slightly greater than that of the required coinand the bottom wall of the guide member forwardly adjacent said openingis pressed downwardly as indicated at 14 out of the plane of the mainbody portion of the bottom of said guide.

Intermediate the circular holes 9 and 13, the bottom wall of the guideis provided with a rectangular opening 15 the transverse dimension ofwhich is substantially equal to the diameter of the finger hole 9. Therear edge of this rectangular opening has formed therein the channel 12hereinbefore mentioned which channel connects said rectan lar openingwith the area established by the depressed portion 14 just described.That 1s to say, from Fig. 4 it should be apparent that the rear edge ofsaid rectangular opening has formed therein the channel 12 which is onlwide enough to permit passage therethroug of the coin slide rojections46 and 47 to be described hereinater, but the depressed portion 14 is ofa width greater than that of said rectangular openin to accommodate orocket the coin carried y the slide, all as will be 4 pointed out morefully in the following description. At the two rear or innermost cornersof this rectangular opening there are provided rearwardlyextending'kerfs to receive locking dogs presently to be described.Mounted on the bottom of the guide is an inverted U-shaped bracket 20carrying the horizontal pin 21 havin reduced ends, and upon these endsand positloned thereby as well as by the arms of the bracket, aremounted two slide holding or lookin dogs 22 and 23 each under thecontrol of a ouble wound coil spring 24 carried by the pin 21. Each dogis of a length to extend upwardly and have its end pass throu h a kerfjust above described and lie in t e plane of the coin slide, the upperend of each dog being sllghtly tapered as clearly indicated.

The extreme rear or innermost end of the guide carries a member 25secured thereto as byfthe screw 26, said member having its rear end bentupwardly to pass through an opening provided therefor in the guide andto extend thereabove into the plane of the coin slide to serve `as s astop, limiting movement of the latter in one direction. The other orforward end of the member 25 is also bent upwardly and then horizontallyto provide the coin deflector portion 27 lying in the plane of the coinslide, and having the under edge of its extremity slightly bevelled asindicated. One side of the coin deflector 27 is cut away as clearly seenin Fig. 6. This coin deilector is slightly to one side ofthelongitudinal center of the guide.

The slide 5 is a rectangularly formed piece 'of metal of a width toclosely fit the turned over` edges of the slide guide, of a thicknessual to that of the prerequisite coin, and of a ength to permit itsmovement from the coin receiving position to a position for releasing orunlocking the vending mechanism. This slide is planar with itsforward'or outer end 30 upturned to provide a hand-hold by means ofwhich the slide is moved. A coin opening 31 is centrally provided in theslide and so disposed that, when the slide is in its extreme outerposition with reference to the cabinet, the coin opening 31 will haveits forward edge overlying the forward edge of the finger hole 9 in theguide but, as hereinbefore stated, the finger hole is of a diameter lessthan that of the required coin and therefore the rear edge of the coinopening 31 will ovelie a portion of the bottom wall of the gui e.

Hence, it will be seen thata coin of requisite diameter 38, when placedin the opening 31, will remain supported in the plane of the slide bythe underlying portion of the bottom wall of the guide. On the otherhand, a coin of less diameter will drop normally through both openings31 and 9 unless pains be taken to manually maintain the fraudulent coinin the plane of the slide While initiating its rearward movement.However, such pains will be of no avail for releasing the vendingmechanism because the fradulent 4coin will ultimately fall through therectangular opening 15 in the guide member and thereby free the slide ofany means by which the slide can be made to pass the holding or lockingdogs such as 22 and 23 to reach a position to unlock or release thevending mechanism.

-Extending rearwardly from the coin opening 31 is a slot 32 to receivetherein the ends of the member 25, the extreme rearward end of the slot32 being so positioned that it will strike the end 33 of said member tolimit the voutward movement of the slide in its guide, see Fig. 1. Atthe forward end of the slotl there is provided a shoulder 34 (see Fig 6)which is so positioned as also to strike the stop 33 thereby limitingthe innermost movement of said slide. In Fig. 3 the slide has been movedinwardly almost to the limit of its movement. A' spring 35 may bedisposed in the edge of the slide to increase the frictional engagementwith itsguide.

The under surface of the slide adjacent the forward edge of the openin31, is provided with a short groove for eac ofthe dogs 22 and 23. Inother words, there is a, groove 36 for the dog 22 and a slmilar groove.37

for the do 23,'said grooves having their bottom sur aces lnclined to theplane of the sllde and sald grooves functioning primarily when Worncoins of requisite value are used.

In other words, these grooves or inclined surfaces do not extend clearthrough the slide, and therefore, when no coin is carried by the slidein its opening 31, the dogs 22 and 23 will beforced by the tension oftheir common spring 24 into said opening and their ends will extendtherethrough suliciently to engage the front edge of the opening,prosurface of the coin and then pass again on to the under surfaceof-the slide. Should the required value coin be worn to reduce .itsthickness, then the dogs inight stop the slide when attempting to passfrom the coin again to the surface of the slide and therefore thegrooves 36 and 37 are provided to receive the ends of the dogs anddirect them again on to the slide surface. y The angle bracket 7 has acentral longitudinally extending slot 40 adapted to rece1ve therethroughan upper holding or locking dog 41 under the tension of a leaf spring42, said dog loosely mounted on a pm 43 bridged across said slot andhaving its ends journalled in upstanding ears 44 mounted adjacent saidslot. The leaf spring 42, secured as by the screw 45 to the rearmostIend of said angle bracket, is curved upwardly and forwardly over thedog to exert a downward pressure thereon. u

The mounting of this forwardly projecting dog is such that, when theslide is 1n its forward or outermost position, the tapered free end ofthe dog will rest on the top surl face of the slide adjacent the edge ofthe slot adjacent the 32. If the slide is pushed inwardly with no coinin its opening 31, the dog 41, under the ur e of its spring, will movedownwardly into tg and, dropping theree coin opening through aswell as tc opening 15 of the slide guide, come'to vertically hanging rest betweenthe forward edge of the coin opening 31 and the 4rear edge of saidrectangular slot, thus preventing further inward movement of the slide.On the other hand, when a coin of prerequisite characteristics isemployed, the Adog 41 will ride readilyfrom the top surface of the slideon to and over the top surface of the coin, and pass therefrom to restagain on the upper surface of `thehandle end of the slide because theprerequisite coin completely fills said opening.

To assist in free movement of the dog 41, the central portion of theslide immediately periphery of the coin opening 31, is depressedangularly out of the plane of the slide as indicated at 46 and 47 torovide inclined surfaces functioning similJa-rly to the surfaces 36 and37previously described. The depressed portions of' the slide will travelfreely in the channels 10, 11 and 12 ofthe uide. B depressing the metalout of the pine of t e slide there is-provided a teat or projection 47to assist in .moving the coin inwardly until the coin ultimately-dropsthrough thefintended release rough the rectangular any opening 13, andthe other teat or projection 46 serves to insure a full inward stroke-ofthe slide to release the coin from said opening 13. In this connectionit will be understood that the projections 46 and 47 extend downwardlyso far that they could not pass over a coin in the pocket 14. In otherwords, should the slide be moved inwardly almost to the full end of itsstroke and then stopped, the contained coin will drop into the pocket14, 'but an outward movement of the slide sufficient to'permit theinsertion of another coin would be impossible because the projecv tion46 would strike the innermost edge of the pocketed coin and jam saidcoin against the closed end of the pocket. Therefore it will beappreciated that if the projection 46 were omitted. from thisconstruction, it

would be possible for the slide to be moved' inwardly so as to cause itscontained coin to'drop into and be retained in saidpocket when saidslide was not moved to the fullest .innermost end of its stroke; thensaid slide couldbe moved outwardly and another coin be inserted thereinwith a subsequent inward movement of the slide in an attempt to operatethe vending mechanism. However, in such a condition as just describedf,the second inserted coin would slide over the upper surface of thepreviously inserted and now pocketed coin but theprojection 47 wouldultimately come in contact with the edge of the previously inserted coinwith the result that the further inward movement of the slide wouldhavea tendency to cause both coins, now in superposed position, to be movedtoward the release opening 13. When the superposed coins would reachsaid opening, then there would be a jamming actionsincethis opening ismade only slightly greater than necessary to permit asingle coin to falltherethrough. Not only this, but the two superso far that it willcontact the edge of the pocketed coin.

. Mounted on the upper side of the slide guide is a magnet 50 securedasby the bridge 51 and screws 52, the pur se of the magnet being toprevent release o the vending mechanism through fraudulent substitutionof an iron orsteel disk Aor washerfor the coin of prerequisitecharacteristics. j The ma et overlies the slide so that, when thesli eis moved4 inwardly, the iron diskA 53 will be attracted upwardly by thepoles 54 of the magnet as clearly shown in` Fig. 5. When this occurs theedge of the iron disk will abut the end 27 of the coin deflector andthus stop the slide from further inward movement to that position whereit will unlock or release the vending mechanism. The prerequisite coinwill not be attracted by said magnet and therefore its advancing edgewill fall in the depression 14 of the guide member as clearly shown inFig. 3 and pass under the bevelled end of the delector 27 to ultimatelydro through the coin release opening 13, there y freeing the slide whichthen moves to vending releasing position.

From thel foregoing, it will thus be evident that a coin having thepredetermined characteristics may be used in this slide, and also coinsof lesser diameters as well as iron or steel disks, with or withoutcentral apertures, may be used. The use 4of a coin of predeterminedcharacteristics will, of course, result in the intended operation of theslide to release or unlock the vending mechanism, but a disk of the samesize as the predetermined coin may also be used to permit operation ofthe slide at least as far as the poles of the magnet' 50. If such asubstitute disk be used and it be of material other than that which isattracted by a magnet, then the slide will be correctly operated asfully intended when a predetermined coin is used. Therefore, it ispossible with this slide to use, for instance, a brass trade check ortoken as is often the case where machines of this character might bedisplayed, said check or token having the full monetary Avalue of thepredetermined coin.

On the other hand, if such a substitute disk be of material which isattracted by the magnet, then the poles of the magnet will draw itupwardly and`therefore retain it in the plane of the slide so that,instead of falling into the depressed portion 14 of the guide andultimately passing out through the discharge opening 13 thereof, it willstrike the end 27 of the coin delector and thereby prevent furtherinward movement of the slide into vending operating position.

If there be used a hollow centered coin or vdisk f the general shape ofa washer and of the same diameter as the predetermined coin, then suchsubstitute disk may be moved with ,the slide only as far as the upper`centrally disposed holding or locking dog 41. In other wordsthis dog isso positioned that the point thereof'will be moved under the urge of thespring 42 into the disk aperture and pass so far therethrough as tocause the point of said .dog to extend below the plane ofthe slide) andthereby cause a jamming or stopping of the inward movement of the slide,whereby it is impossible to release the vendingmechanism. In such acase, the retraction or outward movement of the slide is possible sincethe upper dog is forwardly directed and the end thereof is tapered sothat there will be no art 0f said dog to catch upon the edge o theopening of the substitute disk and prevent its being drawn out with theslide to a position where it can be removed.

If a coin or disk of a diameter less than the diameter of thepredetermined coin be inserted in the coin opening 31 of the slide, itmay drop therethrough and also through the linger hole 9. If, however,the fraudulent operator of the machine so intends, he may cause theslide to move inwardly while he manually holds the fraudulent disk intheplane thereof until it has about half way passed the cover plate 1, atwhich 4time the disk can be further moved by the slide alone. Naturally,inward movement of the slide causes such a disk to be tangent to theforward edge of the coin opening 31, thereby leaving a space\between theopposite edge of said opening and the advancing edge of the disk. It istherefore evident that in such a case, the point of the upper dog 41 mayreadily enter such space and abut` the advancing edge of the diskthereby prevent` ing further inward movement of the slide.

Upon retracting the slide, the small diameter' disk will be movedtherewith and may be dropped throughy the finger hole 9. i

However, the fraudulent operator of thei machine may be ingenious enoughto use his finger nail or other suitable device to keep the smalldiameter disk pushedup against the edge ofthe coin opening 31 until suchtime as the upper dog has ridden from the upper surface of the slide onto the upper surface of said disk. This will not result in successfuloperation of the machine since a very slight further movementof theslide in an inward direction, coupled with the pressure created throughthe spring 42, will ause the upperv dog to push said disk down throughthe rectangular opening 15 'which has a transverse dimension justslightly less than the diameter of the predetermined coin. The slide,then being freed of said disk, may be moved a little further inward, butthe upper dog will have fallen through the coin opening 31 and will behanging vertically therethrough as well as through therectangularlopening 15 as a result of which the slide will come to astop when the forward edge vof the coin opening 31 jams the dependingdog 41 against the rear edge of the opening 15.

In heretofore known constructions where there has been provided a singleholding or locking dog on one side of the slide, it has been possiblefor a fraudulent operator to insert a thin sheet of material, such assteel or strong pa er, to cover the coin opening 31 and whic is movedsimultaneously inwardly with the slide. In such a case the upper dog.such as 41 will drop on to the surface of said sheet but will ride.thereover and be kept above the plane of the slide so that the slidecould reach its innermost position functioning as intended, if said dogswere4 on one side of the slide only. The depressed portions 46 and 47 ofthe slide, by extending below the under surface of said slide andclosely iitting the channels such as 10 and 11, would make it extremelydiiiicult, if not impossible, to insert such a sheet between said undersurface and the top surface of the o enclosing guide therefor, becausethe sheet would not iex itself to t said channels and the advancing edgeof the sheet, even though it passed 47, would Hatten out to such anextent as to be obstructed by the depending point of 46.

' on one side of the slide, but it would be insuiiicient for the use ofsuch material on both sides at the same time. It would therefore resultthat one of the dogs would function as intended to hold theslide frominward movement to a position to release the vending mechanism, in theabsence of a coin of predetermined characteristics.

It is also to be noted that both the upper and lower dogs are so mountedthat each has a general forward inclination or, in other words, both theupper and lower dogs extend from their lpivots in a direction toward thehandle of the slide, whereby an inward movement of the slide naturallytends to create a bindin action by the dogs with respectv to the sli' e.Thus, the dogs are what may be termed naturally opposed to the releasingmovement of the slide, and said dogs are opposed to each other sincethey are disposed on opposite sides of the slide and are forced by theirrespective springs toward said slide.-

Lastly, the upper dog is disposed in an operating planewhich isintermediate the operating planes of the lower dogs whereby a coin ordisk, as well as the coin receiving opening 31, is affected at threedifferent points.

A reversal of the singleupper dog 41 and thevpair of lower dogs 22 and23 would not result in an eiicient operation of the slide for thefollowing reason. It is to be particularly noted that the single dog isdisposed in a diametric plane of the coin aperture, and therefore, inits illustrated position, the point thereof will operate upon theforemost advancing portion of the coin, thus tending to force theadvancing edge portion downwardly into the rectangular opening 15 of theslide guide. It follows that, in the continued movement of the slide,the coin will be still further deflected downwardly by pressure of thesingle dog until it is completely released from the coin aperture 31,and in this downward deiiection there will be no under dog disposed inthe diametric plane of the coin for the advancing edge of the coin tostrike and be jammed thereby, since the under dogs 22 and 23 are'disposed an appreciable distance to either side of said plane and inpositions not to affect or even touch the advanc.-

the same, then the pair of dogs would not bev of a length nor in suchpivotal position as to cause them to forcibly move ldownward theadvancing edge of the coin. The points of the pair of dogs would notoperate upon the coin until the advancing edge of the latter had passedthe transverse plane of said points, and when this occurred, then thesingle dog on the under side would be in aposition to obstruct thedownwardly deflected forwardly moving edge of the coin. and cause ajamming action.

It is obvious thor thoso Skiuod in th oro o may vary the details ofconstruction as well as arrangements ofV parts without departing ,fromthe spirit'of the invention, and therefore it is not desired to belimited to the foregoing except as may be required by the claims. o

What is claimed is V 1. vIn a device of the character described thecombination of a slide provided with an aperture to receive a coin; aguide for said slide adapted to permit a stroke of predetermined lengthwhen said slide contains a coin; and means on said guide for Apreventinga full stroke of said slide when containing no coin, said meanscomprising a pair of pivoted members engageable with said aperture onone side of said slide, and a single pivoted member 'engageable withsaid aperture on the other side of said slide, the single memberdisposed intermediate said pair. 2. In a device of the characterdescribed the combination of a slideprovided with' an aperture 4toreceive acoin; a guidel for said slide adapted topermit a stroke ofpredetermined length when said slide contains a coin;l and means onlsaid guide for preventing a full stroke of said slide when containingno coin, said means 'comprising a'pair of pivoted members below saidslide .-and` engageable with said aperture of the latter, and a singlepivoted member 'disposed' above said' slide and Voperable in a plane4intermediate Y engageable with said aperture.

3. In a device ofthe character described the combination of a slideprovided with an aperture toreceive a coin; .a guide for said slideadapted to permit a stroke of predetermined length when said slidecontains a coin; and means on said ide for preventing a full stroke ofsaid sllde when containing no coin, said means comprising a singlepivoted member disposed on one side of said slide in a diametric planeof said aperture, and a pair of pivoted members disposed on the otherside of said slide in chordal planes of said aperture, all of saidmembers engageable with said aperture.

4. In a device of the character described the combination of a slideprovided with an aperture to receive a coin; a .guide for said slideadapted to permit a stroke of predetermined length when said slidecontains a coin; and means on said guide for preventing a full stroke ofsaid slide 'when containing no coin, said means comprising a-singlepivoted memberdisposed on one side of said slide in. aA

diametric plane of said aperture parallel to a slide edge, and a pair ofpivoted members disposed on the other side of Said slide in chordalplanes of said aperture parallel to said diametric plane, all of saidmembers engageable with said aperture.

5. In a device of the character described v the combination of a slideprovided with an aperture to receivea coin; a guide for said slideadapted to permit a stroke of predetermined length when said slidecontains a coin; and means on said guide for 4preventing a full strokeof said slide when containing no coin, said means comprising a singlepiva guide for said slide; a magnet disposed above said slide and oversaid slot; means extending into said slot to permit the full operativetravel of said slide when carrying a coin, said means having anextension cooperating with said magnet to prohibit said full operativetravel when the slide carries a magnetic substitute for the coin, saidextension abutting the substitute attracted by said magnet; and means onsaid guide to prevent a full stroke of said slide when containing nocoin, said means comprising a pair of pivoted members engageable withsaid aperture on one side of said slide, and a single pivoted memberengageable with said aperture on the other side of said slide, thesingle member disposed intermediate said pair.

A In testimony whereof I affix my signature.

WALTER A. TRATSCI-I.

oted member disposedon one side of said n slide in a ldiametric plane ofsaid aperture, and a pair of pivoted members disposed on the other sideof said slide in chordal planes Y of said a erture and to either side ofthe single mem r, all of said members engageable with said aperture.

6. In a device of the character described the combination of a slideprovided with an aperture to receive a coin; a slot in said slide; aguide for said slide; a magnet disposed above said slide and over saidslot; means extending into said slot to permit thefull operativetravelof said slide when carrying a coin, said mea-ns cooperating with saidmagnet to prohibit said full operative travel when the slide carries amagnetic substitute for the coin; and means on said guide to prevent afull stroke of said slide when containing no com, said means comprisinga pair of pivoted membersengageable with said aperture on one side ofsald slide, and a single pivoted member engageable with said aperture onthe other side of said slide2 the single member disposed intermediatesald pair.

7. In a device of the character described the combination of a slideprovided with an aperture to receive a coin; a slot in said slide;

'itin vDISCDLAIMER 1,908,380.-Walter A. Tratsch, Chicago, 111. G01NSLIDE. Patent dated May 9, l

1933. Disclaimer filed June 25, 1936, by the patentee and the' assigneeof one-half interest, Monarch Tool cf: Manufacturing 0o.

Hereb enter this disclaimer to claims 1 to 5, inclusive, of thespecification.

[ al Gazette July 21, 1.936.]

